THE REVERSIBILITY OF SUBITANEOUS AND DIAPAUSE EGG PRODUCTION BY INDIVIDUAL FEMALES OF LABIDOCERA AESTIVA (COPEPODA: CALANOIDA)

¹ Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543

In Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts the calanoid copepod,Labidocera aestiva undergoes a period of facultative diapause that is induced by short daylength photoperiods. This study examines egg production by individual females. It is shown that some, if not all, females can switch the type(s) of egg produced. The results indicate that in Vineyard Sound females adjust to the decreasing daylengths experienced during the fall by switching production from subitaneous to diapause eggs. I suggest that a female is triggered to switch the type of eggs produced after perceiving a specific number of short daylength photoperiods. The conversion is not instantaneous, however, and during this transition phase a female produces both subitaneous and diapause eggs. It is suggested that the reproductive capacity of the population is enhanced by this type of flexible diapause response.

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